


Untitled (29)

by TenRoseForeverandever



Series: Drabbles of the Doctor and His Rose [29]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Angst, Character Death, Drabble Collection, F/M, Gift Fic, Grief/Mourning, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-20
Updated: 2016-03-20
Packaged: 2018-05-27 22:12:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 517
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6302278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TenRoseForeverandever/pseuds/TenRoseForeverandever
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When everything goes pear-shaped on an alien battle field, the Doctor becomes desperate in his grief.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Untitled (29)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jeeno2](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jeeno2/gifts).



> Written for Jeeno2, who was the winner of a drabble in my 500 follower celebration, over on Tumblr. Her request was: “ _The journey of a lifetime._ ”
> 
> I was in a rather dark, angsty mood when I wrote the first stanza of this… and I’m sure it isn’t quite what you envisioned, hon. And it turned into more than a drabble… 5 drabbles, in fact!
> 
> WARNING FOR MAJOR CHARACTER DEATH! (but a happy ending, I swear!)
> 
> BRILLIANT COVER ART BY Rose_Nebula; http://rose--nebula.deviantart.com/art/Nanogenes-684745947

* * *

Cover art by the wonderful Rose_Nebula! (http://rose--nebula.deviantart.com/art/Nanogenes-684745947)

* * *

 

Rose crashed to the ground. An excruciating pulse of pain lanced through her body. A second later… there was no pain; no sensation at all. That couldn’t be good.

Her sight began to dim and panic set in. She was slipping away, even as battle raged around her. She needed him to know…

“Doctor!” The breathless plea faltered from her lips, and she willed herself to cling to life.

His beloved face appeared; hair dishevelled, eyes wild. “Rose! NO! ROSE! Stay with me, Rose!”

“It was the journey of a lifetime…”

And with her last breath, she sighed, “…my Doctor…”

\--oOo--

He shielded her lifeless body against the explosions and mayhem around them. He felt her final breath against his cheek; heard her heart’s final throb.

All his fault.

In despair, he gathered her to him, and staggering to his feet, strode across the battlefield. Rose’s hair cascaded over his arms, a golden banner of peace. The fighting stopped in their wake. Combatants, sensing the power he exuded (the anger, the loss, the Oncoming Storm,) lay down their weapons.

Reaching the TARDIS doors, he faced the silent soldiers. “This war ends here and now,” he decreed. His Rose’s dying act: armistice.

\--oOo--

It was all wrong. She could not be gone. He refused to believe it. The words of the Beast, _the valiant child, who will die in battle…_ , mocked him, as he clutched Rose’s battered body to his chest.

No. If he believed in one thing, he believed in her. His Rose. Her promise of forever.

The universe owed him. He had lost so much. He would _not_ lose her! Damn the consequences!

Arranging her on the infirmary bed, he stroked her hair, and placed a kiss to her cold lips. With a snap of his fingers, he released Rose’s salvation.

\--oOo--

Her eyes fluttered open to a deluge of sensation: lights, sounds, smells, textures, patterns.

The Doctor stood at the foot the bed, an inscrutable expression beneath his bedraggled hair.

She narrowed her eyes, lips pursed, baffled. “I died… I felt it… 25 minutes, 43 seconds ago.” She stretched her hand toward his, seeking comfort.

He stumbled forward, pulling the offered hand to his lips. “I couldn’t bear the thought of losing you.” Raw emotion transformed his appearance. He was so vulnerable: frightened; thankful; very guilty. She could sense it through the touch of their skin.

“I’m never gonna leave you.”

\--oOo--

Two hearts galloped in her chest; whorls of time danced around her.

Rose saw something die in the Doctor’s eyes the moment he realized she understood. She placed a loving hand on his cheek, his shame flooding her mind at the touch. “Tell me.”

“Nanogenes. But they copied _my_ physiology. I was desperate. Now I’ve condemned you to watching everyone you love…”

“Not everyone. I’ll have _you_ … forever.”

“Stuck with me? You deserve so much more.”

“‘S not so bad.”

“Yeah?” He offered a shy smile, sharing his hope and love with her.

“It’ll be the journey of a lifetime.”

* * *

 

**Author's Note:**

> Apologies for gratuitous use of nanogenes!  
> (But I'm truly not very sorry!) ;D


End file.
